In much romantic love, the picture of our brother that we see is one of contradictions. We both love and hate him, and the two concepts effectively cancel each other out. So we are left with nothing. We do not know whom we see in our brother any more than we know whom we see in ourselves. A Course in Miracles counsels that we will be given a picture to replace what we thought, an image of our brother that we will prefer over all our contradictory images. Even this is not all of him, for it is a perception, and it remains for perception to be translated into knowledge before we will ever see our brother truly. This final step remains in the future for all of us, because it is our translation into Heaven, a step taken at the end of our pathway by God himself.
Tag: hate
Better View of Life
“This is the view of life you cannot imagine bringing about, or bringing joy in its coming. But this is what you must begin to imagine if you desire to accept love’s coming instead of to reject it once again. For your refusal to give up specialness is your refusal of the Christ in you and a refusal of love itself. (A Course of Love, 14.31)”
Affirmation: “I would give up specialness in love today, replacing it with the holy in love.”
Reflections:
1 – ACIM and ACOL
Here A Course of Love echoes much that has been emphasized in A Course in Miracles. ACIM postulates that special love turned to holy, in relationships, is our way home. In the process of turning special to holy, we learn how to forgive. And in the forgiveness, we recognize that the others in our lives have always been either calling for love or loving. Even their anger and attack are reconsidered as calls for help, or love.
2 – Special to Holy
We do not lose anything by turning our special loves into holy ones. This may be what we fear, for much romantic love is actually specialness, and that is why the romantic love can quickly turn to indifference, or even hate.
3 – Leave Behind
Let us have none of this nonsense. We are better than this. We are God’s children, eager to do His will. And would we turn our back on any of His children, even those who seem to have turned away from us?
4 – Forgiveness
We will never know peace until forgiveness finds a place in our hearts. We forgive as much for ourselves as for another. This is the ultimate secret of why forgiveness is so important. We cannot proceed to Atonement with God until we have gotten our hearts right in love that we actually do feel for others, the love that may be hidden over by hate.
5 – Hate
Give up a refusal to love today. Nothing anybody has done to you is worth the anguish of hate. Know that not everyone is able to love as freely as we would desire, and this is not a failing. All have free will, and are given the means to turn to whomever they choose. They too may know rejection. It does not matter. Our hearts will soften, in forgiveness, and we will have taken giant leaps ahead on our pathway back to God. Forgive for yourself as well as of the other.
Prayer:
Dear Father/Mother,
I would focus on love today, love undiminished by any negative emotion. Help me to do this. I know that this is what You want for me.
I would not ever let hate hold a place in my heart. Hate normally comes from being hurt badly, and I am fortunate not to have been hurt that badly. May my brothers and sisters who have known the depths of hurting, be healed.
Amen.
Overcoming Grievances, Hate, and Resentment
ACIM Workbook Lesson 85 – for Monday, March 26, 2012
Affirmation: “My grievances hide the light of the world in me.”
Selected Passage:
“To see, I must lay grievances aside. I want to see, and this will be the means by which I will succeed. (WB150)”
Reflections:
To see is to have vision, the understanding that is afforded us by the Holy Spirit. And to see aright, we must leave our grievances behind. Other words (not stated in ACIM, but suggested by a close reading) that would be akin to “grievances” would be resentment and hate. These dark emotions will preclude our seeing aright. And we must see aright if we are to bring salvation to our brothers and sisters in this world.
Affirmation: “My salvation comes from me.”
Selected Passage:
“Today I will recognize where my salvation is. It is in me because its Source is there. It has not left its Source, and so it cannot have left my mind. I will not look for it outside myself. It is not found outside and then brought in. But from within me it will reach beyond, and everything I see will but reflect the light that shines in me and in itself. (WB150)”
Reflections:
The passage quoted above is a theoretical look at one of the more practical aspects of A Course in Miracles. For those of us who are drawn to the theoretical, we will find much to ponder in this passage. God is within. There is nothing outside ourselves (a Text tenet). We project, and then we perceive the external to ourselves. But when we recognize that God speaks to us from within, we can know what is meant by the lesson for today.
Prayer:
Dear Father/Mother,
I would leave all my grievances, even the tiny ones, behind me today. When I don’t collect grievances, I am not prone to attack verbally. Thank You for this insight. It is akin to the insight, also given by you, that I am not prone to attack unless I am stressed. I would live in Your peace today, and I would not collect grievances nor invite stress.
Help me today when the stress seems to be too much. All manner of problems will develop unless I take a time-out and pray. Help me to remember You when it counts most. I would live in Your peace. That is all that I really need to think about as the day unfolds.
Thank You for being there for me. I know that You are within, and that nothing is without–that I am projecting the world, just as are my brothers and sisters in this world. May we find each other a help in our journey back to You, never a hindrance. If anybody attempts to bait me today, let me know that I am seeing amiss, and a few moments of quiet, solitary time will set my perceptions aright again.
Amen.
MIRACLES EACH DAY 